The liver is an organ that plays an important role in defending the whole body from toxins introduced from the outside and taking charge of the metabolism of the ex-vivo substance. That is, it performs diverse kinds of functions such as converting various kinds of ingested nutrients into a form necessary for the living body and synthesizing various kinds of substances for life sustenance such as albumin, and biotransformation of xenobiotics into an easy-to-excrete state. As in vivo materials which are introduced into a body pass through the liver, the liver is more likely to be exposed to many toxic substances than nutrients and is more likely to be damaged than other organs. The liver has an excellent liver regeneration ability and it is fully recovered to some damage. However, if sustained damage is caused by excessive stress, smoking, exposure to chemicals due to environmental pollution, alcohol and virus infections, stop of bile secretion, and so on, not only the functions of a liver will be deteriorated, but also a part of the liver tissue will be completely destroyed. As a result, the damaged parts cannot be recovered to a normal state. Finally, a liver fibrosis may lead to fatal liver cirrhosis, and a liver cirrhosis may develop into a liver cancer. In addition, a liver disease is not diagnosed at the initial stage because it does not show serious pains or self-awareness symptoms, but it is not found until the end of the term. Therefore, it is impossible to treat a liver cancer at the appropriate time and accordingly, the mortality rate is accordingly high. In spite of seriousness of a liver disease, there is no effective treatment for a liver disease.
In the case of hepatitis caused by hepatitis virus, an antiviral drug is being used. However, there is a problem that the side effects are very serious. In recent years, the remarkably effective treatments have not been developed for a liver disease due to the increasing toxic substances caused by alcohol and environmental pollution. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop a drug that may treat and prevent liver damage while maintaining the structure and the functions of a liver tissue.
On the other hand, the Orostachys japonicus is a perennial herbaceous plant with a dicotyledonous rosales crassulaceae, which is called as Orostachys japonicus, and it has been recorded that the oriental herb has a tremendous effect for anti-cancer effect, fever, geothermal, eczema and burn. It is known to be particularly effective for breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, bone marrow cancer, esophageal cancer, uterine cancer, lymph node cancer, stomach cancer, colon cancer, hypertension, hypotension, blood circulation, diabetes, paralysis, arthritis, constipation, vomiting and various adult diseases.
As the components present in the Orostachys japonicus, triterpenoids such as friedelin, epifriedlanol, glutinone and glutinol; sterol-based substances such as β-sisterol and campesterol; flavonoids such as fatty acid esters, camperol and quercetin; and aromatic acids such as 4-hydroxybenzoic acid and 3,4-dehydroxybenzoic acid and gallic acid. In recent years, studies on the treatment of various kinds of diseases using the Orostachys japonicus are actively and briskly under way.
In the case of Orostachys japonicus, 90˜95% of the water is included. Thus, in order to expect the widely-known efficacy, it should be taken in an excessive amount, but it is impossible for patients who have much difficulties in digesting even the adequate amount of Orostachys japonicus because the digestive function is actually reduced to take excessive doses. Therefore, it will be necessary to comprehensively study the method to increase the effective component and to improve the convenience of administration of a drug.